1. Daily entrance up to 6 guests

2. Daily group entrance up to 10 guests

3. nightly log cabin rental up to 8 guests

4. attend one of our daily or weekend retreats.

1. Schedule your 45 minute float time using the Schedule now button.

2. Arrive at 10am for check in.

3. Forest bath hike on a 30 minute walk to the creek backbone or to our spiritual circle garden.

4. Change and Let your body relax in the large sauna overlooking the forest.

5. cool off in the cold room and hydrate with complimentary teas and water.

6. head to the Hydrotherapy circuit and experience the relax pool, hot tub, cold plunge and float pod. -repeat as needed.

7. Pick out a Daily fresh food selections and lounge by the fire cauldron

8. pick out a massage chair or relax the quiet relax room just staring out into the forest

9. Melt from the relaxation that comes from being unplugged for a day.

10. Repeat as many times as it takes for you to totally relax!

Sugar Creek Retreat began in 2015 with two lovingly remodeled properties adjacent to Shades State Park. We have always had big dreams for the place, but it took about 10 years to shift from a successful nightly rental business to a true wellness and therapeutic retreat center. In 2024, we expanded our offerings by adding a spa building with a 12-person sauna and outdoor hydrotherapy circuit. Inspired by our travels to natural spas in Iceland and social bathhouses in Budapest, we experienced the benefits of these deep cultural traditions that are so simple, yet incredibly powerful. It’s the sense of truly taking care of your whole self. 

We created our own version of these practices to fit our unique rustic Indiana setting. We are learning to embrace Midwestern winters and appreciate the way the Nordic Spa experience changes with each season. Scientific research now confirms what has been common sense for eternity, time in nature is profoundly good for us. Our brains get overstimulated and need rest while our bodies are underchallenged and could use a little “good stress.” Hot/Cold Contrast Therapy uses intense temperature exposure to activate and turn on your natural healing and calming abilities. It strengthens and helps regulate your cardiovascular, immune, and emotional response systems. The Nordic Spa cycle of heat exposure (sauna or hot tub), then intense cold shock (plunge!), followed by relaxation time nurtures mind, body, and spirit. The unhurried time to rest and rehydrate in multiple indoor and outdoor spaces is what sets us apart from a sauna and cold plunge that you might find at a gym or athletic recovery place. Screen-free relaxation time allows integration of the physiological benefits with the mental clarity and centeredness that comes when you can just Be. This is why we design our packages and daily guest passes to encourage you to take your time and stay all day! 

Kuusi Nordic Spa at Sugar Creek Retreat welcomes every person seeking respite from the busyness and overwhelm of our modern world. It's a place to come when you need a break from technology and rushing, and managing it all. We want you to come for a day of radical self care, solo or with a few friends. We’ve made it convenient to book for a personal rejuvenation day and also reasonably priced to rent out the entire space for your group to have a private daily retreat. You can stay even overnight and do it all over again!

We love to collaborate with therapists, yoga teachers, wellness professionals, group leaders, and party planners! If you don’t see an option that fits what you have in mind, be in touch. We envision therapeutic intensives, deep healing, connection building, and amazing memories being made here for a long time to come. Just like you and me, the space is always a work in progress!

Gabe and Liza married in 2014, united by a passion for health and creating. Gabe, an airline pilot and trained Naturopath, is a wild plant enthusiast along with a builder and fixer of pretty much everything. Liza is a licensed psychotherapist who has always focused her practice on hospitality, accessibility and the mind-body connection. We believe that nature has the power to calm and heal. And that, as part of nature, each person holds within them the power to calm and heal themselves. Our mission with Sugar Creek Retreat is to offer a space where that can happen organically.